The CAREER award is the most prestigious award in support of junior faculty who exemplify
the role of teacher-scholars through research, education and the integration of education
and research within the context of the mission of their organizations. It also comes
with a monetary grant, of which Marston received $500,000.

“Receiving this award is an honor and a relief,” Marston said. “There was a lot of
work over the last year and a half that went into this project. With the grant money
from the NSF, my team and I will be able to continue on with this project and expand
it further.”

Marston recently had partnered with Inovio Pharmaceuticals, a San Diego, California-based
company, on his needle-free injection, which you can read about here. The funding from Inovio ends in a few months, so the NSF grant came at the most
opportune time.

The NSF funding also allows Marston and his team of undergraduate and doctoral students
to expand the research and focus on much broader aspects of the work.

“Now, we have the funding to do a deeper study on this project,” he said. “There are
multiple devices and considerations for needle-free injection, and going forward,
we won't just focus on one specific device, like we did with the Inovio project. We'll
be able to do a really thorough classification of the various aspects of needle-free
injections. We'll also do some simulations.

“Ultimately, we aim to provide predictive capabilities, which means we could tell
a drug manufacturer developing a new drug specific design considerations that could
optimize delivery of that drug. If the manufacturer told us we have to target a specific
region of the body, we could fine-tune the parameters for the needle-free jet injection
device to help deliver the drug successfully.”

Marston and his team's work also could help save the U.S. billions of dollars in accidental
needle-stick injuries as well as help stop the reuse of hypodermic needles in developing
nations.

“Needle stick injuries are a big problem,” Marston said. “In the U.S. alone, we spend
billions of dollars treating accidental needle stick injuries, and most of the people
who suffer from them are health care professionals like nurses and doctors. Hypodermic
needles are supposed to be single-use, but some countries are reusing them. If the
cost of manufacturing needle-free devices goes down, then you completely eliminate
the patient cross-contamination factor.”

The Office of Research and Innovation is tasked with facilitating excellence in research, scholarship and creative activity
for Texas Tech students, faculty and staff. The office promotes an academic environment
embracing creativity, curiosity, innovation, diversity, ethics and integrity.

Among other programs, the OR&I supports responsible and safe conduct of research,
faculty development and recognition, interdisciplinary collaborations, externally
sponsored research, partnerships with industry and community stakeholders, international
research collaboration and the application of research for the benefit of society.
The OR&I promotes a culture of creative expression, discovery, innovation and collaboration
with the goal of advancing Texas Tech's status as an elite national research university.